3rd Annual Redefine Conference

2018 marks the 3rd year of Redefine Conference. In April 2016, at Columbia University, Redefine Conference started a tradition, calling hundreds of young Chinese women to listen, to contemplate on current issues faced by our cohort, and to change, starting from little things in our lives.

The theme for our 1st Redefine Conference in 2016 was “Chinese Women Empowerment.” In 2017, the theme was “Chinese Women Abroad.” This year, we hope to talk about “The Voice of Contemporary Chinese Women,” who we “Represent,” hope to “Reshape” and “Redefine.”

The 2018 Redefine Conference is a 2-day event with 4 main sections - Panel Discussions, Workshops, Research Seminar and a half-day Career Training & Networking Session.

Additionally, Redefine proudly presents an OPTIONAL networking lunch event with industry professionals (also guests from our Career Training & Networking Session), who are eager to share their experience, answer your questions and know more about you. For those who are interested in the OPTIONAL networking lunch on Sunday April 15th, we would like you to send a copy of your resume to redefine.international.2015@gmail.com for a general screening before you purchase your ticket. Those who pass the screening will receive an email invitation to join the lunch. You can then purchase the lunch-inclusive ticket by choosing the option "RSVP - with Networking Lunch."

This panel is focused on gender, cultural identity, and career choices. In this discussion, speakers will share how they position themselves for career advancements and transitions, as well as the challenges and opportunities they have encountered as slashies. The discussion will also touch on how the self-identity of a Chinese women plays a role in the panelists’ career transformations.

Danyang Zhao | Keynote

Corporate Associate at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP

Danyang Zhao graduated from the Yale Law School with her Juris Doctor degree in 2016 and is currently a second-year corporate associate at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. She is a licensed attorney in the State of New York and her practice focuses on corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, financial services institution, and capital markets. Growing up in Beijing, Danyang graduated from China University of Political Science and Law in 2013, after which she went to the United States to pursue her law degree. She has previously worked in the chambers of the Honorable Emmet G. Sullivan in the United States District Court of Washington, D.C. in the summer of 2014. Danyang is also a famous writer on Zhihu and owns a WeChat Blog with over 120,000 subscribers combined.

Tracey Huang | Slashies Speaker

Master of Social Science, CUHK

Jie Huang (Tracey) has a diverse work background across different industries, from public relations, not-for-profit, to financial services. She currently works in the strategy and research team at Bank of China New York Branch, one of the largest foreign banks in the U.S. She joined the Bank in early 2017 after three years at China Institute, which is the oldest non-profit organization in the U.S. exclusively on China. She was the Business Programs

Manager and also involved in fundraising activities at China Institute. Before

moving to New York City, she was an Account Manager at a financial PR consultancy firm in Hong Kong, managing public relations and investor relations for IPO clients.

Tracey holds a B.A. in Journalism from Sun Yat-Sen University, and a Master of Social Science in Corporate Communications from Chinese University of Hong Kong. She also obtained a Business Certificate from Columbia University after she moved to New York City in 2012.

Shuyun Liu | Slashies Speaker

MA Columbia University | Senior Consultant at Ernst & Young (EY)

Shuyun Liu is a Senior Consultant at Ernst & Young. She was born and raised in Sichuan, China and moved to the US in 2008 - so this is her 10th anniversary here in the US. She holds a BA degree from Franklin & Marshall College and an MA degree from Columbia University. She has always been active in women topics, including a project she did in rural China on gender education, a student club she started in college on international women's issues, as well as her recent involvement in Yinuo Fellows.

Yunong Zheng | Slashies Speaker

NYU MPA | Associate at Atheneum

Yunong Zheng is an Associate at Atheneum and a pro bono consultant. Born in the northeast of China, raised in Shanghai, educated and employed in Hong Kong, Yunong moved to New York in 2015. She holds an MPA degree from New York University and Bachelor Degree of Social Sciences from University of Hong Kong.

With a strong interest in the intersection of private sector and social sector, Yunong has interned/worked in a variety of companies, B-Corps, NGOs such as United Nations, Cause Strategy, Ashoka. She explored her interest by working on CSR projects with OFO in China, toilet building projects in Ghana, economic development projects in India and digital finance programs in Asian Pacific & Africa. In leisure time, Yunong serves as a pro bono consultant for multiple organizations in NYC. Recently she joined Harvard SEED as a Business Development Specialist.

Siqi Tu is a Ph.D. candidate in sociology at City University of New York researching the recent influx of Chinese students into U.S. private high schools, along with its transnational relevance to educational attainment, international migration, and elite education. She earned a BA degree in sociology from Fudan University (China) and a MA degree in sociology from Columbia University. Her work focuses on the areas of urban sociology, immigration, education and inequality. Siqi was born and raised in Shanghai, China and moved to New York City in 2012. She developed her interest in immigration and urban neighborhoods as an observer of diverse communities in different metropolitan areas. She teaches sociology at Brooklyn College from 2014 and is currently a Writing Fellow at Kingsborough Community College.

Lu Shirley Dai | Higher Education Speaker

Lu Shirley Dai graduated from Barnard College where she studied Art History and Dance. As a choreographer and dance artist. Shirley is currently a first-year student in MFA in Dance program at Sarah Lawrence College. She has also been a guide and educator at Dia: Beacon since January, 2017.

Shirley is actively making work that explores the interaction among dance, visual art and media. Her choreography develops from an interdisciplinary creative process that involves mapping, architectural planning, photography taking, improvising and imaginary thinking.

- UN | SEEN, an evening-length project that initiates from a movement investigation in space and expands its form with the integration of photographic media through projection mapping, creating a dynamic visualization of space and physicality;

- A Photographer’s Dance, a site-specific work that was commissioned by multimedia and image artist Baoyang Chen for his solo exhibition, Framework, at the Cloud Gallery in New York City.

Sirui Shao | Keynote & Higher Education Speaker

Sirui Shao is a New York-based financial journalist who covers capital raise and mergers and acquisitions. She graduated from Columbia Journalism school and hold a bachelor degree in finance from the University of Alabama. She acts as the president of China Media Academy, a program designed for global students who want to learn more about the media and finance industries in China. The program is celebrating 10th anniversary. She also raised the idea of a people profile series of unique Ive League students called “Hundreds aspects of Ive League students”, for example, Kecheng Fang, Yuefei Qin, Haitao Fan.

This panel is focused on gender and higher education. 4 cross-generational Chinese panelists will share their experiences of pursuing undergraduate and/or advanced degrees in the United States. The conversation will cover their motivation of studying abroad, the ongoing question of staying or leaving the US after graduation, and gender related issues including sexual harassment and gender discrimination in higher education in both US and China.

Selected topics to be explored in depth at the workshops are:

Negotiation

Social Entrepreneurship

Education

Self Discovery - Finding your Passion in Life

Selected questions to probe into at the Research Seminar are:

What role did (does) ethnicity play in your friendships and romantic relationships?

How do your gender, original family and the tradition of your culture influence your attitude towards marriage / family?

How were (are) you influenced by exogenous immigration laws when thinking about career paths after graduation?

What factors do you consider when making long-term decisions such as immigration?

Were (Are) people mentally stressed because of, or regardless of, their experience abroad?

Industries represented at the Career Training & Networking Session:

Professional Experiences in both China & US

Investment Banking

Finance

NGO

Consulting

Tech / Data

Nonconventional (HR, Art, Healthcare)

History of Redefine:

Founded in 2015, Redefine builds a community for Chinese women, with a focus on self-discovery, growth and leadership. Through cultivating critical thinking mindset and giveback mentality, we aim to empower young females to redefine their identities and influence their communities.

Vision of Redefine Conference:

By fostering dialogues and workshops, we seek to empower Chinese women with connections, resources and mindsets to develop self awareness, continue critical thinking and grow into future leaders. The long-term purpose is to change the world into a more gender-equal place through ripple effects.